FAQ

There is recommended, but not required, reading for the course and a compilation of writings and videos (made available online) that range from peer-reviewed to popular articles, to first-hand writings from ancient and contemporary compassion meditation experts. Each student can take on as much or as little of that as they like. More importantly are the daily meditations. They are 15-20 minutes, and they evolve each week. Students are strongly encouraged to practice those daily, as the development of compassion during the class is “dose dependent” and the meditations, as well as other quick, informal weekly practices support that development. The course is as much about experiencing compassion as learning about it.

It’s to the student’s advantage to attend all eight classes in order to get the most out of the course, as each class involves lectures and group discussions that are key components of the training process.

Although classes are recorded and available for student use for one month following the last class, if you know ahead of time that you will need to miss one class or more, we suggest you wait to register for a course at a time when you’ll likely be able to attend all sessions. Having said this, our instructors are familiar with and understand the unpredictability of modern life and will help orient you to any materials if you miss a class.

If you’re an enrolled student and know you will miss the first class in advance, please contact the instructor by emailing CompassionEducation@stanford.edu.

No, CCARE’s Compassion Courses are open to the public and no previous education or experience is required. The only admission criterion is that participants must be at least 18 years of age.

Yes, students must be at least 18 years old to participate in the courses.

The registration fee for 8-week Compassion Courses is $425 and includes course instruction, materials, and guided meditation recordings.

Yes! You may request reimbursement from your STAP funds by submitting the request through your department’s administrator or manager. Unfortunately, CCARE cannot directly charge your STAP funds.

Full refunds are available up to 2 weeks prior to the class start date. Cancellations between 2 weeks and 3 business days prior to the class start date incur a $75 cancellation fee. No refunds are available after 3 business days prior to the class start date.

Yes, if you are an LCSW, LEP, LMFT, LPCC, RN, or licensed psychologist, you can earn 14 CE credits for your Compassion Course for a fee of $175. It is the sole responsibility of the participant to attend the entire class meetings, always have their video on, participate in the class, and submit a separate course evaluation form at the end of the final class. No partial CE credit is available if more than one class meeting is missed.

Please review the following information for your profession

CE credits for psychologists are provided by the Spiritual Competency Academy (SCA) which is co-sponsoring this program. The Spiritual Competency Academy is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Spiritual Competency Academy maintains responsibility for this program and its content. The California Board of Behavioral Sciences accepts CE credits for LCSW, LPCC, LEP, and LMFT license renewal for programs offered by approved sponsors of CE by the American Psychological Association. LCSW, LPCC, LEP, and LMFTs, and other mental health professionals from states other than California need to check with their state licensing board as to whether or not they accept programs offered by approved sponsors of CE by the American Psychological Association. SCA is approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing (BRN Provider CEP16887) for licensed nurses in California. RNs must retain their certificate of attendance for 4 years after the course concludes. For questions about receiving your Certificate of Attendance, email CCARE at CompassionEducation@stanford.edu. For questions about CE, email Spiritual Competency Academy at info@spiritualcompetencyacademy.com.

If you are taking a compassion class from someone other than CCARE, please contact the instructor to see if CE credits are available for the class.

No, Compassion Courses offered by CCARE do not offer academic credit.

CCARE publishes quarterly Compassion Course schedules on our website and in our newsletter. You may subscribe to the CCARE Newsletter by entering your email address in the “JOIN OUR NEWSLETTER” box at the bottom left of the CCARE homepage.

For now, CCARE is only offering live online Compassion Courses. We will announce any changes in our newsletter. You may subscribe to the CCARE Newsletter by entering your email address in the “JOIN OUR NEWSLETTER ” box at the bottom left of the CCARE homepage.

A number of individuals throughout the world have been trained and certified as Compassion Teachers. Browse CCARE’s Global Directory of Compassion Teachers organized by location to find someone in your area. Please contact these teachers directly using the email link or website provided in their bio to inquire about their teaching schedules and locations.

No, due to the participatory nature of the courses only registered students may attend.

Your thoughtfulness is most appreciated! A cancellation link can be found near the bottom of your original registration confirmation email (for free events only). If you cannot locate your original registration confirmation email, submit a request using the Contact form or email CCARE at ccare_info@stanford.edu. For CCARE events that require payment of a registration fee, please check the event’s webpage for information on registration cancellations.

Most of CCARE’s public lectures and talks are free (unless clearly specified) and often are open for anyone to attend, including students, researchers and the general public. CCARE also occasionally holds educational conferences which are often open to the public. Specific information registration information for each conference will be found on the event’s webpage.

Please check the event’s webpage for specific information.

Many of CCARE’s free talks and lectures are open to the public and registration is not required in order to attend. However, early access to seating is offered to registrants. Once the event starts, doors open to all on a first-come, first-serve basis. Registration is recommended as our free events can often be oversubscribed.

Please register each attendee under his or her own name.

After 4 PM M-F and on weekends, parking is free in the A and C permitted lots and at metered spaces at Stanford University. Most of CCARE’s public events are held after 4 PM, so it is likely you will find free parking. Please be sure to check posted signs when parking.

To receive announcements on CCARE’s events as they arise, please subscribe to our newsletter at the bottom left corner of our website.

While we appreciate your interest in CCARE, our administrative office and staff are not able to accommodate walk-in visitors. If you have a specific inquiry, please visit our Contact Us page to get in touch with one of our staff members.

We have a special paid fellowship known as the CCARE Undergraduate Roscow Fellowship. Fellows should be interested in fields related to compassion, altruism, empathy and social connectedness. Fellows are an integral part of the CCARE team and their responsibilities include administrative, event, research and communications support. They should be enthusiastic about supporting CCARE and able to dedicate at least 10 hours a week for a minimum of two quarters.

At this time, we are not accepting applications. Please send all inquiries through our Contact Us page.

Thank you for your enthusiasm and generous interest in volunteering! While CCARE does not administer a formal volunteer program, we will announce future opportunities in our newsletter. You may enroll to receive the CCARE Newsletter by entering your email address in the “JOIN OUR NEWSLETTER” box at the bottom left of our homepage.

You may also want to take one of our Compassion Training classes. Please help spread the word about our research and education programs with your friends and family. We’d love for you to bring a friend or family member to one of our public talks. Or, help us increase the amount of compassion in our communities by taking a Compassion Training class with a friend.

Thank you for your interest in CCARE internships. While we are not currently accepting applications for internships, we will announce future opportunities in our newsletter. You may subscribe to the CCARE Newsletter by entering your email address in the “JOIN OUR NEWSLETTER ” box at the bottom left of our homepage.

You can help spread the word about our research and education programs. We’d love for you to bring a friend or family member to one of our public talks. Or, help us increase the amount of compassion in our communities by taking one of our Compassion Training classes with a friend or family member.

No, our center does not offer graduate degrees. However, many of our affiliated faculty are members of academic departments at Stanford that do offer graduate degree programs. If you’re interested in mentorship by a CCARE-affiliated faculty member, we suggest you contact him or her directly to inquire about potential mentorship and available graduate degree programs.

Please see the following website to learn more about Stanford’s policy regarding research with animals:

https://med.stanford.edu/animalresearch/why-animal-research.html

We’re glad to hear of your interest in graduate school! Being an academic center at Stanford, CCARE does not offer degree programs. However, there are CCARE-affiliated faculty in Stanford academic departments that do offer degree programs (such as Psychology, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Neurosciences, etc.). If you’re interested in applying to a Stanford degree program and researching compassion or altruism, we suggest looking up the Stanford faculty that have been affiliated with CCARE’s research to identify who may be your ideal mentor.

Beyond Stanford, we recommend looking up faculty who have worked with the Mind and Life Institute and The Greater Good Science Center, who you may want as your mentor. We suggest you contact their organizations directly for guidance. Also, you’ll want to take a year or two and gain research experience (preferably in a lab with one of the top researchers you can find) so that you can demonstrate additional research expertise and passion for that area. Also, consider attending the annual Mind & Life Summer Research Institute, which is  great for making connections with compassion researchers.

We’re glad to hear you’re interested! Please start by exploring our website. Our video section has recordings of many of the world’s top experts in compassion research, and our wiki logs definitions of compassion as well as research tools to measure compassion. Please also attend our lectures, talks and conferences, which are dedicated to the science and application of compassion.